


Happy Birthday, Kiyotaka

by ThePurpleFrog



Category: Dangan Ronpa
Genre: A little angst, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, M/M, One Shot, birthday fic, mentions of bullying
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-06
Updated: 2014-09-06
Packaged: 2018-02-16 08:34:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,588
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2262993
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThePurpleFrog/pseuds/ThePurpleFrog
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ishimaru never really got to celebrate his birthday before. With how busy his parents always were and how unpopular and lonely he was in school, it was apparent that he never got to have a birthday party of his own. Mondo decides to surprise him with a party on his special day.<br/>Pretty fluffy. One-shot. Warnings for some bullying but it's pretty brief.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Happy Birthday, Kiyotaka

_Happy Birthday, Kiyotaka._

The note was scrawled hastily on a small piece of paper, as if written at the last minute.

It was taped to a small meal in the fridge that was covered in plastic wrap. Every day, after Ishimaru returned home from school, a dinner like this awaited him. He was too young to cook for himself but his parents always worked late, so they would leave him a dinner he could microwave for himself before studying and going to bed. Sometimes, there would be instructions for how long he was supposed to leave it in the oven, but usually there weren’t any notes. So he was surprised to see one today. 

He stared at the note while he ate, while he studied, and right before going to bed. The words just seemed so strange to him. Happy birthday. It seemed bizarre that today was his birthday. He was always so disconnected from the thought of birthdays, of actually having a day that was yours to celebrate and be cherished on with family. But none of that had ever happened for him, so he saw his birthday as just another day. He wondered what exactly had made his parents remember this year. In his five- no, now it was six, wasn’t it- years of life, Ishimaru had never once been told happy birthday, and it all felt as insignificant as the paper the note was written on. 

* * *

_Happy Birthday, Kiyotaka._

The words were written on the corner of the blackboard, just enough out of the way so that the teacher could write lessons down.

Ishimaru’s seventh grade teacher was unique in that she remembered everyone’s birthday. Whenever it was a student’s birthday, she would write their name on the board. She wouldn’t do much else; they didn’t have the time or means to throw a party, but she figured she might as well do something. Ishimaru was honestly surprised to see his name on the board. He had completely forgotten that today was his birthday, let alone that he had a birthday. He remembered his age based on what year it was; after all, there wasn’t much point in an actual birth date when nothing happened on it. But he smiled at the board anyways, happy to be remembered for once. 

When he returned from lunch period, he noticed the words on the board had changed.

_Happy Birthday, Asshole._

He wasn’t sure who wrote it. The suspect list was basically the whole classroom. Most of the people in there disliked him, for reasons he couldn’t figure out. From rude gossip to actual harassment, most of the kids in the room were happy to see tears prick at Ishimaru’s eyes. But today, it wasn’t the bullying that made him sad; no, it was jealousy. He looked at the board and wanted to cry. When another student’s name was written, they were treated much differently. Friends would surprise them with gifts, they would bring elaborate lunches that maybe even had cake that their parents bought, and some kids would even show off presents that they had received. But Ishimaru got none of that. Honestly, he wished to forget his birthday again. Why remember it if all he’d be reminded of was what he didn’t and couldn’t have? It was best to forget the whole thing and just live life normally.

"Teacher," he said, approaching her moments before class started, "can you please erase my name from the board?"

* * *

Ishimaru was returning to his room after a long day of class. Normally, he’d be with Mondo or heading to Mondo’s room to study together, but today he was alone. Every once in awhile, Mondo just wouldn’t show up to class. This used to piss him off when he thought Mondo was a slacker, and it used to worry him when he’d see Mondo return with cuts and bruises from gang fights, but Mondo promised that he’d do his homework and stay safe, and that was enough for Ishimaru. But it was strange. Today when he texted Mondo (between classes, of course!), he didn’t tell him where he was. Usually he wasn’t so secretive about it. He was at the store getting candy for himself. He decided to go for a drive. And sometimes he would just admit that he wanted to stay in his room all day. But today, Mondo’s response was “I’m busy.” Ishimaru just hoped that whatever he was busy with was good, safe, and legal. 

When Ishimaru reached his dorm room, he noticed that the door was cracked open. Worry soon filled him; he had his key- the only key to the room- with him. Had someone broken into his room? Were they trying to vandalize it or rob it? There were a couple of frightening students at this school, after all, like Syo and some of the upperclassmen he had met. He gulped and then stepped forward, deciding to face the culprit head to head. He clutched at his bag, heavy with textbooks, ready to swing if needed. 

When he stepped into the room and turned the lights on, Mondo jumped in front of him. 

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY KI-" Mondo’s shout was cut off as Ishimaru slammed his bag on the biker’s head. He fell to the ground, clutching his head in pain.

"Mondo!! I’m so sorry, are you okay?!" Ishimaru shouted, kneeling down to his level. 

"Fuck, Kiyotaka, what was that for?" Mondo complained. 

"I’m sorry!! I didn’t know it was you! I-I thought it could be anyone!! I saw the door open and I thought that someone had broken in and…" He paused. "Wait, Mondo, how exactly did you get in here?"

"I broke in."

"Why would you do that? You could just ask me and I’d let you in!" Ishimaru responded, exasperated. 

“‘Cause I wanted to surprise ya… god, that fuckin’ hurt!”

"You’re a moron." Ishimaru stroked Mondo’s head gently. "But I’m sorry for hitting you."

"It’s fine, I guess I coulda at least told ya where I was." 

"Were you in here all day or something?"

"Yeah. I was settin’ all this up." He stood up and gestured to the rest of the room. Ishimaru had been so preoccupied making sure his room was free of bandits that he hadn’t bothered to look around. There were brightly colored streamers hanging from the ceiling, on his bed were a couple of wrapped, colorful boxes and his desk had a cake on it. But the one thing that drew his attention most was the banner hanging from the ceiling. In large text it read:  _Happy Birthday, Kiyotaka!_

"I figured I’d do somethin’ for your special day." Mondo said as Ishimaru gawked at the room. "Sorry for not showin’ up to class at all. I figured this was more important."

"This is what you were busy with? My birthday…?" Ishimaru asked. He honestly couldn’t remember his birthday. Was it actually today? The thought of a birthday in general hadn’t crossed his mind in years. 

"It’s the 31st of August, right?"

"I think so."

"Whaddaya mean ‘I think so’? It either is or it isn’t."

"Yes, Mondo, it is." Ishimaru finally said. 

"Well…. do ya like it?" Mondo asked. 

"I…" Ishimaru just kept staring at the room, letting it all sink in. Was this what a birthday party was like? He remembered kids at school talking about them. There would be cake and presents and friends and joy and fun. He had always wanted to be invited to one, even though he knew his chances were slim. And he didn’t have parents that cared enough to throw him one or friends to invite to one. But now here he was with Mondo, who was sweet enough to waste a whole day setting up a party just for him! He honestly felt a little guilty; he didn’t deserve something as extravagant as this. "You didn’t have to do this for me."

"What? ‘Course I did" Mondo argued. "Especially since you’ve never had one before!"

"How do you know that?"

"Ya told me you’ve never had cake before. It doesn’t take a genius to figure it out."

"But-"

"I already set it up. There’s no point in arguing, okay, Kiyo?"

"Okay… thank you, Mondo."

"Anything for you, babe." Mondo said, ruffling Ishimaru’s hair. They stood in an awkward silence for a moment until Ishimaru finally spoke up. 

"So… what am I supposed to do here?" He asked.

"What’s that supposed to mean?"

"I’ve never done this before… am I supposed to do something in particular?"

"Well yeah… uh…" Mondo looked confused himself. Most people knew what they did at birthday parties; it was weird to have to explain it. "Sit at the desk, I guess." Ishimaru did as he was told and sat down. He finally got a good look at the cake and it was clear that Mondo had made it himself. The chocolate frosting was thick in some places while in others you could see the vanilla cake poking through. The lettering on the top was sloppy, but Ishimaru could make it out to read  _Happy Birthday, Kiyo!_

"Does it look okay?" Mondo asked, pulling up a chair beside Ishimaru. "It was kinda my first time makin’ one… I mean, it should taste good no matter how shitty it looks, but-"

"I love it." Ishimaru interrupted. The cake was sloppy and unprofessional, but Mondo had put his time and work into making something for Ishimaru; so of course it’d be wonderful.  

He was surprised by how sweet it tasted. When he had seen cake in the past, he thought it looked like bread. Weird bread covered in brightly colored cream and sometimes filled with strawberries. He thought it looked weird but if everyone was so happy to get one, then he wanted to try it too one day. 

"How is it?" Mondo finally asked.

"It’s sweet." Ishimaru replied. "I didn’t expect it to be this sweet. But it’s not a bad sweet or anything!! I like it a lot, actually."

"I’m glad. But hey, while you’re eatin’ cake, you’re supposed to open gifts too."

"Gifts? Mondo, I-" Before Ishimaru could protest, Mondo shoved one of the wrapped boxes in his hands. "W-wait, are all of the boxes on the bed… all of these are for me?"

"Who else would they be for?"

"I simply cannot accept them!! I haven’t done anything to earn all of this!! The cake is enough, thank you!!"

"Hey, I got them for ya, and you’re gonna enjoy the shit outta them!"

"You spent too much on me! I can’t repay all of this!"

"It’s your goddamn birthday!! You’re not supposed to be repayin’ anything!!" Ishimaru still looked reluctant, so Mondo put his hand on his shoulder to comfort him. "Just think of this as makin’ up for all the birthdays ya didn’t have."

"But…" Part of him wanted to refuse, to tell Mondo that he should return the gifts and use his money on something more worthwhile. But Mondo had gotten all of these gifts for him on his own time; and he wanted so badly for Ishimaru to have them. He must really care about me, Ishimaru thought. "Okay… thank you, Mondo. I’m sorry."

"It’s okay. Just open ‘em."

Most of the presents were pretty simple, but Ishimaru loved them nonetheless. There were some notebooks since Ishimaru always seemed to be filling them up. There was a large bag of cotton candy that Mondo had insisted Ishimaru would love. There was a video game that Mondo had bought just so the two of them could it play it together in his room. And, of course, there were clothes so Ishimaru could go out in public wearing something other than ten copies of the same uniform. 

When Ishimaru reached the last gift, Mondo put his hand on his to stop him from opening it. 

"What’s the matter?" Ishimaru asked.

"I… I, uh, made this one." Mondo said, his face turning a bit red. "Don’t laugh at me or anything, okay? I know it’s stupid…" 

"I won’t." Ishimaru promised. Mondo reluctantly drew his hand back, letting Ishimaru finally open the package. Knowing Mondo and his dream of carpentry, he figured there’d be a little wooden figure or something of that nature inside the box. But instead, he found white cloth inside. He pulled it out, revealing a long, white coat that was nearly identical to Mondo’s. The back was even covered with the Crazy Diamond’s catch phrase in golden embroidery. 

"You… made this?" Ishimaru asked.

"Yeah. I mean, I know it’s not exactly something you’d want, but…"

"It’s amazing." Ishimaru said, not taking his eyes off of the material. "All the detail you put into this… it’s wonderful!!"

"Ya sure? I mean, how often are ya gonna be able to wear it?"

"I don’t know. But I should be able to wear it with you. Besides," He beamed, and put the coat on, "it’ll keep me warm." 

They sat for awhile longer, just chatting with one another and eating cake, and overall enjoying each other’s company. 

"Hey, Mondo." Ishimaru said, while Mondo stuffed a particularly large piece of cake in his mouth. "Thank you so much for today. I… I still don’t know if I deserve all of this, but it’s been so much fun and I just… wanted to thank you, I guess, for caring so much about me!"

"Ya don’t have to thank me for somethin’ like this. I mean, it’s your birthday! This is how you’re supposed to treat the one who… uh…" He coughed, and Ishimaru wasn’t sure if it was due to the large piece of cake or his nerves. "I love you."

"…What?" Ishimaru asked. It was the first time those words had ever been spoken to him. He wasn’t quite sure if he had heard correctly. He knew Mondo cared about him. They were dating, after all, but he couldn’t possibly love him! That was completely out of the question… right? 

"Shit, don’t make me repeat it!!" Mondo cursed, his face bright red. "I said I love ya, okay?! Because I do!! Got it?!"

"I understand, Mondo!" Ishimaru responded. He was so overwhelmed, he couldn’t help but raise his voice as tears rolled down his cheeks. "I love you, too!!" 

"Oy… why the fuck are ya cryin’?" Mondo asked, putting his hands on Ishimaru’s shoulders. "I’m sorry, was it too soon? We haven’t been together long enough, have we? Shit, I’m sorry!"

"I’m crying because I’m glad!!" Ishimaru sniffled. "I’ve just never been told that before!! So I’m happy!!" Mondo smiled in return and hugged him tight, stroking his hair gently. 

"Happy birthday, Kiyotaka." Ishimaru smiled too, and clung on to Mondo as tight as he could. This was why people liked birthdays so much, he realized. Being with people you love and who love and cherish you in turn was the best feeling in the world. It was still bizarre for Ishimaru to feel like this; to feel like he was actually cared about, but he wasn’t about to complain. He realized that Mondo was a lot like the cake he had made. He was weird looking on the outside; tough and a little strange, but on the inside he was likely the sweetest thing on the planet. And Ishimaru couldn’t be happier spending his birthday with someone as sweet and strange as him.  

"Happy birthday, Kiyotaka." Mondo finally said. 

And it was the first time Ishimaru felt actual joy from hearing those words.


End file.
